Degree Requirements

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Course Requirements

All students need to have sufficient knowledge of the subject they will be teaching. Illinois State Board of Education requires a minimum of 48 quarter hours (32 semester hours) in the content area subject. Typically these requirements are met concurrently with the completion of the LAS undergraduate degree program. Prior to admission to the 5th Year Master’s Year, students must meet with their LAS academic advisor to complete an undergraduate degree audit that will include an official written content area evaluation. Any areas of deficiency must be completed prior to beginning student teaching.

Student Teaching: 8 graduate quarter hours required

Registration in student teaching requires completion of all requirements and procedures listed in the college core section. EDU 95 indicates to the Illinois State Board of Education that all field experience hours are complete. It is a non-credit, non-tuition course.

LicensureTests

All individuals licensed by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) are required to complete licensure tests specific to their teaching license. Secondary Education History students must complete the following tests:

Social Science: History Test (test #114) – assesses core knowledge of history and social science fields. Test is required before Student Teaching (deadlines apply)

Assessment of Professional Teaching (APT) (test #103, grade 6-12) – assesses knowledge of teaching planning, delivery, assessment, professionalism, and technology. Test is required to be licensed; recommended to be taken before Student Teaching.​

Field Experiences​

Each student seeking licensure from the College of Education/Professional Education Unit must complete supervised field experiences in appropriate settings in conjunction with education courses. The field experiences must include a variety of grade levels, multicultural experiences, and a minimum of 15 hours in special education settings. All field experiences must be completed prior to final approval for student teaching. Students should enter field experience hours into the FEDS system upon completion of each course with field experience requirements. For details on requirements, expectations, documentation, & courses in your program that require hours, visit the College of Education website.

HST 298

INTRODUCTION TO HISTORICAL SOURCES AND METHODS

This is the first of two introductory core courses required of all history majors, history minors, and education majors with a concentration in history. In this course, students will learn the varied ways in which scholars interpret the past, focusing particularly on the evidence and arguments used by historians in their work. To that end, students will learn about the varieties of primary sources (textual, material, oral) as well as the varied methods historians use to analyze such evidence. In addition, students will practice analyzing primary source evidence in oral and written presentations, learn how to use the library for historical research, and how to discern scholarly arguments in secondary sources.

Prerequisites:

(WRD 103 and WRD 104) or HON 100 is a prerequisite for this class.

HST 299

CRAFT OF HISTORY

This course is the second of two introductory core courses required of all history majors, history minors, and education majors with a concentration in history. In this class, students will bring to bear the skills in historical sources and methods learned in HST 298 to complete a substantial independent research project. To that end, students will learn how to identify a historical question or problem about which to conduct research; how to find, obtain, and evaluate primary source evidence to research; how to build a secondary source bibliography using reference works, monographs, and scholarly journal articles; and develop and execute a coherent plan for writing and revising a substantial research paper (of at least 10 pages in length) based on an integrated use of both primary and secondary sources.

Prerequisites:

HST 298 a prerequisite for this class.

GEO 101

EARTH'S PHYSICAL LANDSCAPE: LITHOSPHERE, HYDROSPHERE, BIOSPHERE

An introduction to the spatial aspects of the Geosystem consisting of the inter-related systems of the Atmosphere (air), Lithosphere (solid earth), Hydrosphere (water), and the Biosphere (living organisms).

ECO 106

PRINCIPLES OF MACROECONOMICS

Principles of Macroeconomics. Fundamental theories of macro (or aggregate) economics: supply and demand, national income accounting and analysis, and international trade. Analysis of unemployment, and inflation, and policies designed to combat these and other current problems.

Prerequisites:

MAT 130 or equivalent is a prerequisite for this class.

PSC 120

THE AMERICAN POLITICAL SYSTEM

A survey of the national political system, including discussions of the political beliefs and behavior of citizens, the constitutional structure, and national political processes.

SOC 101

INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY

Introduction to the language, theories, methods, and research findings of the sociologist at work.

ANT 102

CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY

An introduction to current anthropological theories and methods for understanding human cultures from a comparative perspective; includes an analysis of human institutions such as religion, politics, and kinship, and the forces that change them in a variety of societies, small and large scale.

PSY 105

INTRODUCTORY PSYCHOLOGY I

Introduction to the history and science of psychology; human development through the life span; learning, memory, thinking, language, and intelligence; personality; social psychology. PSY 105 and PSY 106 will include a research participation requirement of no more than six hours. PSY 105 and PSY 106 may be taken in either order; one is not a prerequisite for the other.

TCH 320

EXPLORING TEACHING IN THE URBAN HIGH SCHOOL

(JYEL CREDIT) This course is an invitation to secondary education as a profession, an opportunity for students considering education as a career to explore the reality of teaching and learning a disciplinary content area in a variety of Chicago-area schools. Students will become familiar with different narratives of teaching through teacher and student biographies, testimonials, literature, film, and classroom observations. They will explore the interrelationships between, for example, popular cultural beliefs about schooling; teacher and student identities; and classroom interaction. The instructor will coordinate observations in several classrooms as the basis for intensive, guided reflective work, aimed at supporting students' initial and subsequent efforts of developing identities as disciplinary content educators (25 hours of high school classroom observation required). Course is also an introduction to the TEACH Program. Offered during Fall, Winter, and Spring terms.

TCH 401

TEACHING AS A PROFESSION IN SECONDARY SCHOOL

This course is an introduction to the TEACH Program, including the College of Education's conceptual framework and teacher dispositions, and to the professional world of secondary school teaching, including the policy bodies and stakeholders that impact teaching. Within this developing understanding of the larger context of secondary education, students will begin to articulate clearly professional identities and the behaviors inherent in those identities, including their impact on student learning. Drawing on previous coursework and their growing understanding of differences in individual, ethnic, and cultural group attitudes, values, and needs, students also will learn to recognize the complexities of teaching and learning in a pluralistic society. Ultimately, students will be committed to teaching as a responsible professional who acts in an ethical and collegial fashion. 25 Level 2 field experience required. Offered during Fall term only.

SCG 406

HUMAN DEVELOPMENT AND LEARNING:SECONDARY

This course focuses on the multiple factors that contribute to the period of adolescence, bridging childhood and adulthood. Particular attention is given to the intrapsychic, interpersonal, biological, and socio-cultural processes that are mediated by the meanings that youth give to their identity vis a vis rac, class, and gender formations within the broader society. Students will engage in interdisciplinary study of theories to examine the implications for teaching and learning processes and the role of educational institutions in fostering the healthy development of youth in society. Forms of inquiry will include students' examination of their own lives and assumptions, critique of theory, and observations of young people in a variety of contexts.

Prerequisites:

Advanced Teacher Candidate Standing is a prerequisite for this class.

TCH 495

ASSESSMENT ISSUES IN SECONDARY EDUCATION

This course introduces candidates to theoretical and philosophical issues related to educational assessment. It addresses the range of assessments teachers will encounter in school settings, including individual cognitive and social and emotional assessments; course material, curricula, and disciplinary program assessments; and large scale high-stakes testing. The course provides candidates opportunities to explore student, program, and curricular assessment issues, including assessment methods and tools; standardized, quantitative, and qualitative assessments; formal and informal assessments; formative and summative assessments; integrated, self-, and peer assessments; cultural, social, economic, and language influences on assessments; and issues of reliability and validity in assessment. Offered during Fall, Winter, and Spring terms.

EDU 95

CLINICAL EXPERIENCE WITH CHILDREN AND YOUTH

(no credit) Required of all students. Observations and participatory experience with children and youth in a school or agency. This course is a prerequisite for student teaching and related professional courses.

TCH 590

STUDENT TEACHING

(6 credit hours) This course is the culminating experience for TEACH Program students and requires 11 weeks of onsite student teaching in a high school content area classroom. The course requires students to be in a high school full-time, participating in both in-class instruction and extra-curricular activities related to the school. PREREQUISITES: Open only to TEACH Program Students; Student teaching application and approval required.

TCH 591

STUDENT TEACHING SEMINAR

(2 credit hours) This course must be taken concurrently with TCH 590. The seminar format provides students an opportunity to reflect on their student teaching experiences and to reach back and consider what they have learned in the TCH Program and their next steps as practicing teachers. COREQUISITE(S): TCH 590.

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TCH 412

THE NATURE OF HISTORY AND THE SOCIAL SCIENCES

This course builds on the content course work students have done in the seven disciplines grouped under the heading "social sciences" (history, political science, geography, sociology, anthropology, economics, and psychology). In this class students will get further exposure to the basic concepts of the social science disciplines and consider the connections as well as differences between them. The course emphasizes how different disciplinary backgrounds lead students to bring different perspectives to their study of social phenomena and helps them see these phenomena from multiple vantage points. The course will employ a case study approach framed around social issues of interest to all seven disciplines (e.g. social control, threats, development, natural disasters). By the end of the course, students will have applied the knowledge and skills of multiple social science disciplines to evaluate social phenomena, considered the relationship and differences between those disciplines, and be prepared to enter TCH 422 where they will apply their content knowledge to inquiry and teaching in the field. Offered during Winter term only.

TCH 422

INQUIRY & APPLICATION IN DEVELOPING SECONDARY HISTORY AND SOCIAL SCIENCES PEDAGOGY

This course builds on the content knowledge students developed and reinforced in TCH 412. More, it asks them to make the shift from considering how a person prepared in the social sciences analyzes social phenomena to how such a person teaches the social sciences. Students will do this by developing two units of inquiry-based case studies that they could use in their own classrooms. The topics of these case studies will vary from section to section, depending on the needs of the students and expertise of the instructor. Possible topics include the Constitution, the Cold War, slavery, and the Iraq War. As students work on these projects, they will continue to reflect on the course work they have done in the content areas as well as the instruction they see teachers delivering in their field experiences. They will contemplate such questions as: "What are the connections between the social science disciplines? How can they be taught together, creating interdisciplinary courses at the high school level? What are the differences between the social science disciplines and what does this mean for secondary pedagogy? How can teachers use inquiry with their students, making sure they have enough guidance to learn about social events but also the freedom to pursue their interests and make sense of the world on their own terms?" By the end of this course, students through readings and their projects will have advanced their learning about the nature of inquiry, its implementation in the classroom, and the connections and differences between the social science disciplines. 25 Level 1 Field Experience hours required. Offered during Spring term.

TCH 452

RESEARCH METHODS & DISCIPLINARY INQUIRY: HISTORY AND THE SOCIAL SCIENCES

This course introduces students to education research methods and discipline-specific research and inquiry. During the first five weeks, the course focuses on basic questions, issues, and theoretical frameworks central to the purpose, conceptualization, conducting, writing, reading and using education research as a means for informing education theory, practice and policy. Candidates will be exposed to the multiple frameworks that inform education research and various methodologies employed in collecting and analyzing data. During the last 6 weeks of the course, the course focuses on research related to the teaching of history and the social sciences in the middle school and high school and pedagogical content knowledge, including research on teaching and learning, curricula and instructional delivery, assessment, and the relationship of socio-cultural, economic, and language use to teaching and learning disciplinary-specific content. Students will develop and implement small discipline-specific research projects, identifying research questions, conducting a literature search, developing a theoretical framework, and collecting and analyzing data. NOTE: Offered across Fall and Winter terms concurrently with TCH 472 and TCH 482. Register in Fall.

TCH 472

TEACHING HISTORY AND THE SOCIAL SCIENCES IN THE HIGH SCHOOL 1

This course introduces students to the theoretical and practical issues of teaching history and the social sciences in secondary classrooms. The course introduces candidates to research-based and theoretically grounded best practices in the teaching of the basic concepts of the seven social science disciplines. Students will practice and reflect on writing instructional objectives, developing lesson plans, designing a curriculum unit, creating a classroom environment, and implementing instructional delivery strategies and methods, including the use of technology resources, that meet the needs of diverse learners, including English language learners and students who speak nonmainstream dialects of English. Students will reflect on their own emerging educational philosophies and theories. They will also demonstrate commitment to teaching as a professional who acts responsibly, ethically, and collegially in accordance to Vincentian personalism. 30 Level 2 Field Experience hours required. COREQUISITE(S): Taken concurrently with TCH 452 or SCG 451. Offered during Fall term.

TCH 482

TEACHING HISTORY AND THE SOCIAL SCIENCES IN THE HIGH SCHOOL 2

This course continues students' immersion into the pedagogical content knowledge development and practices that began in TCH 422 and TCH 472. The course provides students opportunities to continue to explore and develop research-based and theoretically grounded best practices in the teaching of the basic concepts of the seven social science disciplines with an emphasis on reflective and collaborative practice. The course provides extensive opportunities for planning, using, and evaluating a variety of instructional strategies, including the use of technology resources, through teaching demonstrations and modeling and field experiences. Students will fine-tune and reflect on writing instructional objectives, developing lesson plans, designing a curriculum unit, creating a classroom environment, and implementing instructional delivery strategies and methods that meet the needs of diverse learners, including English language learners and students who speak nonmainstream dialects of English. And like in TCH 472, students will reflect on and clearly articulate orally, in writing, and through practice an educational philosophy and theory. Students will also demonstrate commitment to teaching as a professional who acts responsibly, ethically, and collegially in accordance to Vincentian personalism. 30 Level 2 Field Experience hours required. COREQUISITE(S): Taken concurrently with TCH 452 or SCG 451. Offered during Winter term.

TCH 390

CAPSTONE: INTEGRATING EDUCATION & DISCIPLINARY FOUNDATIONS

This course is designed to help students conceptualize issues and opportunities in teaching their disciplinary content to diverse students and in different classroom contexts. Up to ten hours of community-based service/observation required. In this course, students will analyze and reflect on how teaching in their disciplines is informed by diverse cultures of schooling and youth, including the influences of economic, social, cultural, political, gender, and religious factors on schooling, educational policy and opportunity. Students will use disciplinary content to critically and creatively reflect on the teaching of that content in secondary schools. Students will be introduced to issues and ways of presenting essential disciplinary content in ways that engage diverse learners, including learners who have not been served well by formal education. Students will also develop a theory of teaching that emphasizes the intersection of disciplinary content with multicultural perspectives. Offered during Spring term only.

BBE 501

TEACHING ADOLESCENT ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS AND DIALECT SPEAKERS ACROSS THE CURRICULUM

This course provides educators across disciplinary content areas foundational knowledge for teaching and assessing adolescent English language learners (ELLs) and speakers of non-dominant varieties of English. Especial focus is placed on identifying and augmenting students' various (oral and written) proficiencies and inter- and intra-linguistic varieties of English toward increased academic English proficiency. This course also engages educators in realizing in curriculum and instruction the multifaceted aspects of fostering academic proficiency among adolescent ELLs and speakers of non-dominant varieties of English, such as theories of first, second, and heritage language sociolinguistics; language policy and planning; cross-disciplinary collaboration; parental/family language practices; family and community participation and involvement; informed decision making and advocacy; school/community discourses; learner accommodations; WIDA and Common Core standards; and culturally and linguistically appropriate assessment.

T&L 525

READING, WRITING, AND COMMUNICATING ACROSS THE CURRICULUM

This course analyzes the relationships among reading, writing, speaking and listening. It encourages middle level and high school teachers in all disciplines to take these interrelationships into account and to plan curricula that include current teaching strategies to enable students to become better readers, writers and thinkers in their various content-areas. This course will also concentrate on group process and its role in effective teaching within and across content-areas. Language use, learning and teaching are considered from a multicultural perspective. 30 hours Level 2 Field Experience required.